USAID-Funded Report Highlights Threat to Vital Coffee Crop
A recent USAID-funded assessment has shown that about 95% of the trees that shade Timor-Leste's vital coffee crop are diseased, with about 20% showing obvious signs of decline. A USDA Forest Service specialist has reported these findings to the Timor-Leste office of the National Cooperative Business Association (NCBA), which supports the country's largest cooperative of coffee farmers, and the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries. NCBA and the ministry are now planning their approach the mammoth task of replacing the shade trees while minimizing disruption to coffee bean production. Coffee is the single most valuable commodity for the economy of Timor-Leste, with exports last year totaling about $7 million. Most NCBA-supported coffee is sold by Starbucks as Arabian Mocha Timor. (Jan. 3, 2006)

New Technology Helps Government Transparency
The Timor-Leste government's Technical Secretariat for Electoral Administration has launched its own website <www.stae.tl>, providing a range of information about elections laws and policies, as well as results and statistics from the country's first local elections. Last week, the second and final round of voting in 22 jurisdictions completed the year-long local elections process, with an average turnout of more than 80% of registered voters. The most sought-after information on the new website is the very current results of those elections. Secretariat staff members are now learning how to maintain the website in advance of national elections in 2007. USAID supports the Secretariat through its partner, the International Foundation for Elections Systems. (Jan. 3, 2006)

 

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